Mega Moolah is the progressive jackpot slot that has paid some of the largest online slot wins ever recorded. The base game is a simple 25-line safari slot; the reason to play is the jackpot wheel. This review explains how the Mega Moolah slot works, how the four jackpots are won, and what its RTP means for your budget.
Mega Moolah is a 5-reel, 25-line progressive jackpot slot from Microgaming, released in 2006. The jackpot game is triggered at random on any spin, and once it starts you are guaranteed one of four jackpots: Mini, Minor, Major or Mega. The wheel has 20 segments, and only one is the Mega, which OLBG says starts at £2 million. Three or more scatters give 15 free spins with all wins tripled. The RTP is lower than most slots because part of each stake funds the jackpots: our catalogue lists 88.12% and OLBG quotes 93.42%.
2006 Mega MoolahMicrogaming
| Provider | Microgaming |
|---|---|
| Released | 2006 |
| RTP | 88.12% OLBG quotes 93.42%; part of every stake funds the four jackpots |
| Volatility | Low-medium |
| Max win | See the paytable The top prize is the progressive jackpot |
| Layout | 5×3, 25 lines |
| Stake in the UK | Up to £5 a spin (£2 if you are 18 to 24) |
| Bonus buy | Not available in Great Britain |
| Free spins offers | 1 at UK casinos |
Sources: our slot catalogue and OLBG. RTP is the headline figure; UK casinos can run lower versions, shown in the game's info screen.
Set a budget and a stake. We work out the average cost of play at the game's 88.12% RTP. Real sessions swing well above and below this average.
The Mega Moolah slot is a 5×3 game with 25 paylines, released in 2006 by Microgaming; OLBG now lists it under Microgaming and Games Global. The theme is an African safari, with a lion as the wild and a witch doctor as the scatter. Wins pay from left to right along the lines, and the stake is the only setting you choose.
As a slot on its own, the Mega Moolah slot machine is plain. It has one free spins round and a doubling wild, and the base game pays mostly small wins. What makes it famous is the progressive jackpot game that can start on any spin. Players choose Mega Moolah for the chance of a life-changing jackpot, not for the regular gameplay.
The jackpot game is triggered at random. There is no symbol to collect, and any paid spin can start it. When it does, a wheel appears with 20 segments in four colours, and every segment is a jackpot, so entering the wheel always pays one of the four. OLBG lists how the segments are split: ten Mini, six Minor, three Major and one Mega.
OLBG also gives the starting values, called seed values: £10 for the Mini, £100 for the Minor, £10,000 for the Major and £2 million for the Mega. Each jackpot grows from its seed as players stake on the network, and resets after a win. With one segment out of 20, even reaching the wheel gives only a small chance at the Mega, and reaching the wheel is itself rare.
Three or more witch doctor scatters anywhere on the reels start the Mega Moolah free spins, with 15 spins. Every win during the round is tripled. The lion wild doubles any win it is part of, and in free spins that doubling applies on top of the 3×, for an effective 6×. Three more scatters during the round add another 15 spins, for a maximum of 30, according to OLBG. The free spins are the best source of regular wins, but they do not improve your chance of the jackpot wheel.
The Mega Moolah RTP is lower than most slots because a share of every stake goes into the four progressive jackpots. Sources do not agree on the figure: our catalogue lists 88.12%, while OLBG quotes 93.42%. On £1,000 of total stakes, 88.12% would mean an average cost of about £119, and 93.42% about £66, compared with about £40 on a typical 96% slot. Open the game rules at your casino to see the figure that applies there.
For most players, the RTP describes what the game costs while you wait for a jackpot that will probably never come. If you play Mega Moolah, play it knowing that the price of the jackpot chance is a higher average cost per spin.
There is no fixed Mega Moolah max win, because the top prize is the progressive Mega jackpot. Outside the jackpots, OLBG puts the top win from a single free spin at 1,955× your stake. OLBG reports that the largest win recorded in the UK was £13.2 million in October 2015. Our catalogue rates the game low-medium volatility, and OLBG calls it low variance with a high hit frequency. That describes the base game and free spins well: frequent small wins and few long losing runs, with the jackpot sitting on top as a very rare event.
Mega Moolah's jackpots are shared across a network of more than 15 games, according to OLBG, including Immortal Romance Mega Moolah, Thunderstruck 2 Mega Moolah and Mega Moolah Megaways. These games feed and pay the same progressive jackpots, but each has its own base game, RTP and features. If you like the jackpot idea but find the original too plain, one of the network games may suit you better.
In our database, Zodiac Casino (80 Chances for £1 on Mega Moolah) names the game. Read the terms closely: small-deposit offers on jackpot slots often spread the value across several deposits. Spins or chances on a jackpot slot can, in principle, land the jackpot wheel, but the odds are the same as on a paid spin, and any spin winnings follow the offer's wagering and cap rules.
Mega Moolah free play is not as easy to find as for most slots. OLBG says there is no free play version, and a demo could not pay a real jackpot anyway, because it uses play credits. Where a casino does show a demo, it uses play credits and needs registration and an age check, as UK rules require for all free play.
When you play Mega Moolah online in Great Britain, the stake is capped at £5 a spin, or £2 if you are 18 to 24, and each spin lasts at least 2.5 seconds, with no autoplay. The jackpot trigger is random and not linked to the size of your stake in any way we can verify, so there is no reason to raise your stake to chase it.
Mega Moolah is worth playing only if you understand what you are paying for. The base game is dated and the RTP is low, so as an ordinary slot it is poor value. As a lottery-style chance at a seven-figure jackpot, with steady small wins along the way, it does what it promises. Set a fixed budget for it, treat that money as spent, and play higher RTP slots for longer sessions.
There is no way to make sure you win on Mega Moolah, and no strategy improves the jackpot odds. Check the RTP in the game rules, keep each session to a small fixed amount, and do not increase deposits because a jackpot looks large or overdue: jackpots are random and are never due. Set a deposit limit before you start. Free help is available from the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133.
These UK licensed casinos give free spins on Mega Moolah to new customers. The best offers come first: no wagering before wagering, then by casino score.
18+ T&Cs. New customers. Deposit £1 for 80 chances on Mega Moolah, with match bonuses on later deposits. Wagering is capped at 10× under UK rules; check the current terms.
Mega Moolah next to another jackpot slot, a money collect game with fixed jackpots and a popular hold and win slot.
| Mega Moolah | Age of the Gods | Gold Blitz | Wolf Gold | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provider | Microgaming | Playtech | Games Global | Pragmatic Play |
| Released | 2006 | 2016 | 2022 | 2017 |
| RTP | 88.12% | 95.02% | 96.00% | 96.01% Best |
| Volatility | Low-medium | Medium | High | Medium |
| Max win | See paytable | See paytable | 5,000× Best | 2,500× |
| Layout | 5×3, 25 lines | 5×3, 20 lines | 6 reels, 4,096 ways | 5×3, 25 lines |
| Free spins offers | 1 | 1 | None | None |
| Best offer | 80 Chances for £1 on Mega Moolah Zodiac Casino | 100 Free Spins, no wagering Sky Casino | None | None |
Sources differ: our catalogue lists 88.12% and OLBG quotes 93.42%. Part of each stake funds the progressive jackpots. Check the game rules at your casino.
At random on any paid spin. The jackpot wheel then always pays one of the four jackpots.
OLBG says the Mega jackpot starts at £2 million and grows until it is won. The current value is shown in the game.
Three or more scatters give 15 free spins with wins tripled, and the round can retrigger once for 30 in total.
OLBG reports £13.2 million in October 2015.
Demos are hard to find, and a demo cannot pay a real jackpot. Free play in the UK always needs registration and an age check.
